


It starts with a broom closet...

by alakewood



Category: CW Network RPF, Supernatural RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-12
Updated: 2014-05-12
Packaged: 2018-01-24 13:10:56
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,397
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1606373
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alakewood/pseuds/alakewood
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>Lao Tzu said 'a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.' In this case, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a quick stumble – or, if you really want to get technical, a head-first shove into Danneel Harris' parents' broom closet.</i>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. One

Lao Tzu said 'a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.' In this case, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a quick stumble – or, if you really want to get technical, a head-first shove into Danneel Harris' parents' broom closet. Which isn't so much a closet for brooms as it is for the vacuum and an ironing board and various cleaning supplies. It smells faintly of Pine Sol.

Jensen fumbles for the string dangling from the light bulb in the ceiling and accidentally rubs against Jared. “Sorry,” he mumbles, backing away and knocking into an old ice cream bucket filled with stained rags and old sponges.

“No,” Jared says, shaking his head. “Chad's just- he's a dick.” Outside the closet door, he can still hear Chad laughing like a manic hyena. He's still not exactly sure how he ended up here, at Danneel's house, in a _closet_ with Jensen – it vaguely has something to do with Sophia and Danneel being friends and Chad's obsession with Sophia and maybe- Well, yeah, Jared's epic crush on Jensen has something to do with it, too. Of course, Chad just calls it his 'epic boner.' But, like Jared just told Jensen, Chad's a dick.

Jensen can feel the proximity to the tall, lanky junior make a blush rise to his cheeks and burn at the tips of his ears. He'd heard speculation that Jared might swing his way – not that anyone besides Danneel actually _knows_ what way he swings – and it was enough to catch his attention before the little bits of information he'd picked up second-hand about the taller boy from random classmates and, stealthily, from Sophia, he's something like smitten. Jared's smart and kind and friendly – social in a way Jensen's never been comfortable with – and he's so oblivious to the way Jensen's been drooling over him for the past nine months since Jensen started his senior year. He knows why they're in here.

Jared knocks on the door, a worn 'Kiss the Cook' apron cushioning his knuckles and muffling the sound. “Come on guys,” he says loudly, trying to ignore the tension coming off Jensen – this isn't how he pictured telling Jensen about his crush. Not that he ever pictured telling him at all. “Let us out.” Besides, it's not like Jensen's even _like that._ Jared's pretty sure Jensen and Danneel have a bit of a friends-with-benefits arrangement going on because, well, they're always together and super-touchy-feely and the way she looks at him sometimes- Yeah, Jared's pretty sure this is going to end badly and why Danneel's even allowing them to be locked into a closet together is beyond Jared unless it's all just some big ruse to embarrass the hell out of him. Which may completely and totally be working. “Chad, seriously. Open this door. Please.”

“Not until I hear caveman grunting noises!” More manic laughter and possibly high-pitched giggling that doesn't sound the least bit feminine.

Jensen feels his embarrassment burn hotter like he might spontaneously combust with it. He knows he should say something – deny whatever it is Chad's trying to insinuate because he doesn't want to be outed like this.

“I'm so sorry,” Jared says. He pounds on the door with his fist hard enough to make one of the shelves on the wall drop a box of S.O.S. pads to the floor. “Oops.” He stoops over to pick up the fallen box and ends up eye-level with Jensen's crotch. Jensen's face is shadowed in the light cast from the overhead bulb and it makes his eyelashes seem longer and highlights the thin sheen of spit that covers his lips after his tongue darts out of his mouth to wet them. He forgets about the box of cleaning pads and reaches a shaking hand up to Jensen's hip. “You-”

Jensen bites at his bottom lip at the sight before him. “Jared.”

He can see the rapid rise and fall of Jensen's chest as he breathes, can see the growing bulge under Jensen's fly and smell the heat of him. “Will you let me?” Jared brings his other hand up, strokes over Jensen's thigh.

This can't really be happening. He closes his eyes tight and nods.

Jared's only really done this once and his fingers fumble at Jensen's zipper before he gets the fly of his jeans undone. He rises up on his knees and tugs down Jensen's pants and underwear just enough to expose Jensen's hardening erection. He curls his fingers around the rigid flesh and strokes experimentally, watching Jensen's face as his mouth drops open. Jared keeps his gaze on Jensen's face as he leans forward and takes the head of Jensen's cock into his mouth, tongue sweeping across the bead of precome that wells at the slit.

It feels like all the air's gone out of the closet, like maybe he _is_ on fire and the inferno of Jared's tongue swirling around him is consuming all the oxygen. Jensen buries his hands in Jared's shaggy hair and holds on even as he lets go, coming embarrassingly fast in a series of thick pulses into Jared's throat.

Wow, Jared thinks, swallowing and rocking back to sit on his heels. He licks his lips and looks up at Jensen, his heaving chest and flushed cheeks. As he climbs back to his feet on shaky legs, his impossibly steady hands tuck Jensen back into his pants carefully, tug up his zipper and fasten the button. He watches Jensen's eyes flutter open, incredible shade of leaf green, and leans down to slot their mouths together.

Jensen allows the kiss for a moment, heart racing in his chest like he's just survived a near-death experience and, really, that's not far from the truth. His brain catches up when he realizes that musky taste on Jared's tongue is himself and he jerks away. He can't do this. Doesn't even know _what_ this is, what he's doing. He pushes past Jared and pounds on the closet door with the heels of his hands. “Danny! Open the door!”

A couple long, confusion-filled moments later, the door swings open, Danneel wide-eyed on the other side barely side-stepping Jensen as he bursts into the room and rushes from the house without another word. Danneel turns her warm brown stare in Jared's direction. “What happened in there?”

Jared stumbles from the closet, still focused on the screen door Jensen just bolted from. “He said-” Well, Jensen didn't so much _say_ anything as _imply_ it with a nod of his head. “I thought it was okay.”

Danneel shifts her gaze to Chad, who's sitting at the kitchen table with his I'm-completely-innocent-I-didn't-do-a-thing-don't-look-at-me-like-this-is-my-fault face firmly in place. “I never should've trusted you,” she says, shaking her head. “I'm gonna go try to fix this and neither of you better be here when I get back.”

Jared's heard stories of how... _not nice_ Danneel can be when she's upset, so he nods and takes a wide berth around her as he heads for the door. “I really didn't mean to-”

“Save it for someone who cares.”

Jared can take a hint.

 

 

 **Next:** [Part Two](http://alakewood.livejournal.com/114399.html)


	2. Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Lao Tzu said 'a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.' In this case, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a quick stumble – or, if you really want to get technical, a head-first shove into Danneel Harris' parents' broom closet._

Jared's carefully setting Mrs. Deutmeyer's loaf of wheat bread on top of her carton of Grade A farm-fresh eggs when he catches sight of Danneel in line at his register in Gamble's Supermarket. It's been three days since he last saw her. Since that whole embarrassing – and ridiculously hot – short span of minutes he was shut in a broom closet with Jensen. Jared finishes bagging Mrs. D's groceries and loads them up into her cart, waiting for her to write out her check to the cashier before following her outside and through the parking lot to her old Lincoln Continental.

Danneel is waiting for him by the entrance when he returns with the cart after loading Mrs. D's bags into the backseat of her car. She tears open her pack of gum and looks at him with this...look. “You got a minute?” she asks.

“I guess. Why?” He's wary – he has every _right_ to be wary after seeing the way her anger flared in her eyes before she went off in search of Jensen. Last Jared heard, Jensen had left for his aunt's in Phoenix day before yesterday without so much as a goodbye to any of his friends, even though it seemed everybody already knew he was going.

“I talked to Jensen on the phone last night,” she tells him, scuffing the toe of her Chucks on a crack in the pavement. “He apologized for he bolted.”

“Yeah? He tell you what happened?” _Did he tell you that I molested him?_ , Jared wants to ask.

“Yeah. He's really embarrassed.”

“He's not the only one.” Jared shakes his head. “I was an idiot to think- I _never_ should've trusted Chad.”

“He doesn't, like, _regret_ it, Jared.” Danneel puts a hand on his arm and ducks down a little to get herself in his line of sight. “He likes you. He's had this sickening _crush_ on you all year. And, I don't know. He wasn't ready for what happened, you know? It kinda took him by surprise. Which is why he-”

“Freaked out?” Jared supplies.

“Yeah. So now he's embarrassed and kind of depressed because he thinks he might've screwed up any chance he might have with you.”

“So he still- he still wants to...?”

“Yeah. Like I said, it's pretty sickening how infatuated with you he is.”

Jared feels something swell in his chest big enough to force out all that doubt he was holding onto. “When does he come back?”

Danneel makes a face. “Not 'til the end of the summer.”

And that just won't do. Jared shakes his head. “I don't think I can wait that long.”

Danneel grins. “How do you feel about a roadtrip?”

Jared grins his reply, wide enough to make his cheeks ache. “I feel pretty awesome about it.”

And that's how Jared ends up in the passenger's seat of Danneel's Bronco the next morning, with a promise from Chad (who's still claiming total innocence in this whole debacle) to cover his shifts at Gamble's and this image building in his head of walking up the sidewalk to Jensen's aunt's house and meeting Jensen at the door and kissing him breathless right in front of God and everybody. And, of course, living happily ever after.

They stop for breakfast a couple hours after the sun rises at some dusty truck stop in Abilene and take down the soft convertible top before heading off again, chasing the darkness of the fading night.

They pass the day talking about school and summer plans, about whether or not the whole Chad-and-Sophia thing is ever going to happen. About Jensen. They sing along to the radio loud enough to be heard over the wind rushing around them. They make good time, switching off driving duties during the day, stopping for gas and bathroom breaks, lunch in Van Horn and dinner in Tucson.

The sun is setting ahead of them when they finally pull into Phoenix. “I can't wait to see the look on Jensen's face.”

There's something in the way Danneel says it, gleeful and slightly devious, that puts Jared on alert. “He knows we're coming, right?”

Danneel pushes the hair that's pulled free of her ponytail out of her face and turns a disarming smile at Jared. “Not exactly.”

“What?”

“I mentioned maybe coming down to see him sometime this summer.”

“So, he doesn't-” He grabs hold of the thick steel bar of the frame above him. “What if he-”

Danneel laughs and slaps a hand on Jared's knee. “Don't worry about it. It's gonna be _fine._ ”

“I'm sure _you_ 've got nothing to worry about – he didn't _run away_ from _you._ ”

“Jared. It's gonna be fine.”

Jared'll find out soon enough, he figures. They're only minutes away from Jensen's aunt's. Then they're on her street, house numbers dropping until they're slowly driving down the block. Danneel pulls over in front of a ranch-style house with a parched lawn and bright windows, not really all that different than the rest of the houses in the neighborhood except for the fact that Jensen's somewhere behind that door. “He's not gonna be mad, me ambushing him like this, is he?”

Flicking off the headlights and turning the engine of, Danneel turns in her seat. “I don't think so. He might get mad at me for lying and scheming, but I think you'll be okay.” She socks him in the shoulder and throws open her door. “C'mon. Let's go.”

Jared suddenly realizes that he hasn't thought beyond this part of their trip. Beyond the drive and seeing Jensen. “Danny, what happens _after_? I mean, where are we gonna stay?”

“Jensen's aunt's cool. We can crash here.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.” She links her arm through Jared's and pulls him up the sidewalk. When they get to the door, she thumbs the dim orange-lit button of the bell twice. “She's super-laid back – total opposite of Jensen's mom, FYI. _And, she_ knew we were coming. I talked to her yesterday before I came into Gamble's.”

“That's only if Jensen-” Jared's interrupted by the door opening, a tall, thin woman with dark blonde hair hanging loose around her shoulders standing there in a Cardinals t-shirt and shorts, a wide, familiar smile on her face.

“Danneel,” the woman says, crossing the threshold to pull Danneel into a hug. She looks up at Jared from the embrace, eyes knowing.

“And this is Jared,” Danneel says when she's been released, nudging Jared with her elbow.

“Who is it, Deb?” Jared's heart stutters with the shock of the sound of Jensen's voice.

“Friends of yours, I think.” Deb pushes the door open wider as she steps back and out of the way, giving Jensen a clear view of who's at the door.

Jensen's eyes bug out comically when his gaze lands on Jared and it would probably be funny if Jared weren't so terrified of Jensen freaking out and running away again. “I- What- what are you guys doing here?”

“Oh, you know,” Danneel starts, shrugging nonchalantly. “We were in the neighborhood, thought we'd drop by.”

Jared can't help the hysterical laugh that erupts from his mouth. Three pairs of eyes are turned on him and he feels his face flush with embarrassment. He can't believe he let Danneel convince him this was a good idea. Jensen doesn't look happy at _all._ He reaches blindly for Danneel, fingers curling around her wrist loosely. “Maybe we should...” He takes a step back and tugs on her arm.

Danneel gives him an incredulous look. “What? Are you- _Jared._ ”

Jared can't interpret the expression on Jensen's face as he lets go of Danneel and keeps backing away. “I'm sorry.” He turns away and is at the Bronco in a few short strides, hands flat on the cooling steel of the hood where he braces himself, head hanging between his elbows.

“Jared?” Again, Jensen's voice startles him.

Jared spins, backs up against the car. “Uh, hey. We shouldn't've shown up here unannounced. I mean, your aunt knew, according to Danny, but _you_ didn't know. And- I'm sorry. I'll-” Again, Jared's interrupted, this time by Jensen's mouth pressed firmly against his own. Jensen's got him shoved up against the side of the Bronco.

“Shut up,” Jensen whispers, hands clutching at the front of Jared's thin tee. “You drove a _thousand miles_ across _three states_ to see me.” He shakes his head, looking up at Jared in awe. “I can't believe you-” Jensen shakes his head again and moves his hands up to Jared's face to pull him into another kiss.

This isn't quite how Jared pictured this going, but it's good. Better, actually. “You're not mad?” Jared asks when they separate again to breathe.

“No,” Jensen says, smiling crookedly. “Definitely not mad.” He fists his hands in Jared's shirt again and pulls him away from the Bronco. “Come on. I'll introduce you to my aunt and then...well.”

Jared doesn't need to be asked twice.


	3. Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jared spends the night with Jensen.

Danneel was right – Deb turns out to be super laid-back. She sets them up at the table on the back patio with bowls of rainbow sherbet and a request to be respectful of her geriatric neighbors before heading back inside. Jared sinks his spoon into a scoop that's mostly lime and eyes Jensen across from him. Under the table, one of Jensen's bare feet finds Jared's ankle, soft skin of the underside of his big toe caressing over the knob of bone that juts out from the joint.

“So...on a scale from one to holy fuck, how surprised were you to see us?” Danneel asks Jensen with a grin on her face.

“ _Holy fuck_ seems about right,” Jensen says, toe skimming up the back of Jared's calf.

Jared can't help the smile that tugs up the corner of his mouth as he takes another bite of sherbet. “It's awfully nice for your aunt to let us stay.”

“Wasn't like she didn't know y'all were on your way.” Jensen shoots Danneel a look over his bowl, eyebrows raised. “For that, you can have the couch.”

“You're a terrible best friend.” Danneel's smirk belies the wounded tone of her voice. Dropping her spoon into her empty bowl, she stands from the table. “Just remember to keep it down. Geriatric neighbors.” Danneel's cackling laughter trails behind her as she disappears back into the kitchen.

“So,” Jared begins, eying Jensen as he licks at the melting trickles of sherbet on the back of his spoon, “if Danny's sleeping on the couch, where does that leave me?” He's not going to assume that what Danneel implied was true. He could _hope_ , sure.

Jensen looks just as shy as he did in those few minutes they spent locked in the closet at Danneel's house. He glances at Jared from beneath his lashes. “I can think of someplace.”

The smile that's been playing at Jared's mouth stretches into a wide grin at that. “Oh, yeah?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, in that case.” Jared makes a big show of yawning, stretching his arms up over his head. “Wow. I'm super tired all of a sudden.”

Jensen laughs, a low, warm sound, the faintest lines crinkling at the corners of his eyes. “Come on, then,” he says, pushing back in his chair and rising to his feet.

Jared does the same, follows him back into the house, pulling the sliding door closed behind himself, setting his bowl and spoon in the sink. He accepts Jensen's hand when the older boy reaches out to him, trails behind Jensen through the dark house, down a short hallway, and into a small room with a bed a little narrower than Jared's own at home. “Your aunt's not gonna care that we...you know. That we're _sharing a bed_?”

Jensen pushes the door closed, leans back against it as he regards Jared. He shakes his head, shrugs a shoulder. “No. I don't think so.”

Nodding, Jared kicks off his flip flops and sits at the edge of the mattress. “Okay, then.”

Jensen crosses the short distance between them to stand in the vee of Jared's thighs. “I've never really done any of this before. Except for, you know. That one time.”

“It's okay,” Jared tells him, hands loosely holding onto his hips, tips of his fingers reaching beneath the hem of Jensen's t-shirt to find soft, warm skin. “We don't have to do anything, not if you don't want to.”

Jensen's fingers catch in Jared's hair as he bends his down to kiss Jared slowly. “Not tonight. Not here. But we will, again. Sometime.”

“I'm good with that.” Jared's good with slow. Great with it, even, if it means Jensen intends for there to be an _again._ But slow doesn't mean stopping altogether, so Jared grabs a hold of the fabric of Jensen's shirt and lifts, pulling it over his head before ridding himself of his own. They shuck out of their shorts and climb onto the bed and under the sheets.

Laying on their sides, they kiss lazily for a long time until the day's drive finally catches up with Jared. “You better not snore,” is the last thing he hears before Jensen's mouth presses to his one more time before sleep overcomes him.


End file.
